12th January 2023

Five reasons to keep up with grounds maintenance

You may have a regular cleaning regime in place for the interior of your premises, but how about your grounds and exterior areas? These are areas that many businesses often neglect or manage reactively, sorting out issues only after they arise. Here, we look at the five key reasons to keep up with the maintenance of your exterior environment: 

1. First impressions 
You only have one chance to make a good first impression and your grounds are the first area that visitors, clients, customers and shareholders see. A professionally maintained exterior environment not only demonstrates how much you value your business, but also that you portray a professional image right from the start. Consider the alternative – an unkempt, untidy, overgrown environment creates a negative impression and it’s hard to come back from this. It’s amazing the difference regular grass-cutting, pruning, weeding, carpark cleaning and general site cleanliness can make. 

2. Safety 
Safety is paramount, especially if you have customers and visitors regularly visiting your premises. This means keeping up with tree surgery, ensuring dangerous branches or dead wood is removed; keeping public areas free from leaves, litter and waste; removing trip hazards such as overgrown roots or loose paving stones; and ensuring slippery surfaces are treated, for example, gritting icy areas in winter. Regular external maintenance will help to address all these issues, protecting visitors from injury or accident and giving you the peace of mind you are maintaining the required health and safety standards. 

3. Cost-efficiency 
Regular weekly or monthly maintenance, depending on the size and nature of your external areas, could prove to be a cost-efficient approach rather than reacting to problems when they occur. For example, regularly cleaning drainage channels and guttering, which can easily become blocked with leaves and garden waste, can prevent flooding of common areas such as carparks and pathways. It’s always more expensive to rectify the issue after the event, when a little regular maintenance can prevent it happening in the first place. 

4. Waste removal 
An essential requirement of grounds maintenance is regular waste removal, whether it’s leaves or vegetation, occurring naturally or a result of weeding and pruning, or after adverse weather conditions, such as high winds, heavy rain, ice and snow. Grounds require regular care and attention to ensure they are looking their best, and it’s amazing how quickly waste can build up if not regularly maintained. 

5. Functionality and aesthetics 
Maintaining your grounds and exterior areas is a functional and aesthetic necessity, reflecting the investment you’ve made in your business and premises. For example, if you have modernised or refurbished your premises, your grounds are an extension of your premises and should also reflect your brand and image. Common areas such as car parks and pathways need to be clean, clear and easy to use, and external walls and features should contribute to the overall impression. Regular maintenance will ensure not only the aesthetics, but also functionality. 

Talk to Zenith 

We specialise in providing customer-focused, quality, reliable and competitively priced grounds maintenance solutions for commercial premises - including schools, colleges, corporate headquarters, business parks, shopping centres, pubs, hotels, local authorities and housing associations. 

We have over 35 years’ experience and use only directly employed, fully trained, experienced grounds maintenance staff. We’ll always work to an agreed work schedule and our reputation is built on providing a flexible approach and ensuring a positive customer experience. As a matter of course, we’ll carry out a site-specific risk assessment and provide exactly the services you require, whether this is grass and hedge cutting, shrub pruning, weed control, tree surgery, site clearance and cleanliness, fencing, sports ground maintenance, winter gritting or soft and hard landscaping. 

To find out more, visit our grounds maintenance page and to discuss your requirements or arrange a quotation, either call us on 024 7668 7167 or email info@zenithcontractservices.co.uk